DR NYONI

BINDURA UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE EDUCATION
FACULTY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES

NAME : UNITY
SURNAME : MUCHETO
REG NUMBER : B1335714
PROGRAMME : SOCIAL WORK
COURSE TITLE : SOCIOLOGY OF MEDICINE AND HEALTH
COURSE : SW 206
DUE DATE : 28 March 2015
LECTURER : DR NYONI
QUESTION : DISCUSS HOW SEXUALITY INFLUENCES HEALTH
MARK AWARDED : ………………………
SIGNATURE : …………………………………………..

Sexuality has always been a factor that influences health care in so many ways. In order to really bring out these ways one has to first understand that sexuality is not only about sex but it involves relationships, socialisation, values and beliefs, religion, sensuality and so on. These factors are going to be clearly developed as the essay progresses giving clear elaborations as to how they influence health care.
Sexuality is an integral part of being human. It is gaining increasing recognition for being more than “having sex” and includes making relationships, self-esteem, tactile expression, and the need for closeness according to Could rick (1998).Sexuality can also be defined as a central aspect of being human throughout life and encompasses sex, gender identities and roles, sexual orientation, eroticism, pleasure, intimacy and reproduction as postulated by the World health Organisation (2000).According to Sengupta and Stubbs (2008) sexuality involves many aspects of being human and the four major components are sensuality, intimacy and relationships, gender/sexual identity and sexual health.
Sexuality influences health care through socialisation. In this case socialisation refers to the rearing environment, the school and the community. It is through the way a person is socialized or brought up that influences his or her health. For example in schools the youth of today find it very embarrassing that one is abstaining from sex until marriage therefore those who will be abstaining will suffer from stigmatisation. And due to that belief and stigma in youths it influences others to engage in sexual activities which in turn have a negative influence on health since it increases the chances of getting sexually transmitted diseases. In the same line of idea the youth of today are mostly socialised by the media as much as their families does for example the social media, TVs i.e. movies, music videos and so on. According to Kirby (2002) media programming has rarely depicted sexual behaviour and activities in terms of long term relationships , use of contraceptives and the potential negative impacts of sexual behaviour. Therefore this influences health care in youth since they are likely to engage in sexual activities without proper guidance on how to do it in a safe way. In this case on cannot deny that sexuality influences health care.
Values and beliefs also influence health care negatively. In this case these values and beliefs emanates from culture and religion. In some parts of the African culture people are still practising polygamy and they take at it as a sign of virility or prestige. This increases the chances of people getting sexually transmitted diseases since it involve one person sleeping with multiple partners and usually without protection. And as far as religion is concerned some churches for example the Marange church do not believe in seeking medical care or help therefore this influences their health negatively since some people die for instance from cancer without even noticing due to the fact that they don’t seek medical help. In the same line of idea the apostolic sect also has a belief or a culture of marrying off their daughters to even older men in the same church; this has been a psychological torture to these young women which is a very negative impact on their psychological health as well as sexual health since they will be prone to sexually transmitted diseases. And also, an adolescent's frequent attendance at religious services is associated with less permissive attitudes about premarital sexual activity and a greater likelihood of abstinence (Ku et al, 1993; Billy et al, 1994; Werner-Wilson, 1998). Therefore this shows that sexuality has an influence in health care.
Relationships also influence health in both negative and positive ways. In this case being in a strong positive relationship influences one’s health related behaviour, For example, spouses partners and other loved ones often encourage good health habits, such as eating right, exercising and visiting the doctor regularly. These habits result in improved health and studies also show that happy relationships can relieve stress which can contribute to heart disease and other chronic illnesses as postulated by Blanc (2009) .Those involved in healthy relationships also have a chance of living longer than those who are alone and isolated because the feeling of having someone to love and care for as well as being loved bring about a fulfilment that have a positive impact on health. On the other hand, unhappy relationships can lead to health concerns such as depression, obesity and high blood pressure. In some circumstances, people struggling with unfulfilling relationships can turn to substance abuse in an effort to cope. Therefore this brings to an understanding that relationships(sexuality) have an influence on health care positively and negatively.
Sex also influences health care .In this case looking at sex as far as the biological make up of men and women is concerned, women are said to be more prone to diseases than men because they are genetically weak as compared to men. On the other hand sex in terms of intercourse also influences health care because according to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs to every individual he states that sex is a need to every human being. To second the notion Berman,Felder et al (2003) propounded that sex acts as a stress reliever, booster of immunity and also it is said to improve cardiovascular health. However sex can have a negative influence on people since it increases the chances of infections for example S.T.Ds and HIV/AIDS if one engages without using protection. Therefore this shows that sexuality has an influence on health care.
Gender also influences health care in a positive and negative way. In this case as far as gender roles are concerned men are viewed as superior beings, self -reliant and independent. Hence this idea and belief risks their chances to having a good health because they tend to shy away from medical help since they believe themselves as self-reliant. In this case they believe that seeking help from someone else will make them appear weak and dependent in the public eye yet they are expected to be superior and independent, thus in a bid to prove themselves superior they tend to shy away from seeking medical attention even if they are really in need of it. As for women, they play many roles in households for example child bearing, taking care of the family, house chores and so on accrording to Dixon-Mueller (2007. In this case the fact that they perform multiple roles at a time increases their chance of getting diseases like high blood pressure ,ovarian cancer to mention a few. This therefore shows that sexuality has an influence on health care.
Sexual orientation influences healthcare in the sense that it basically describes the gender a person is attracted to romantically and sexually either female or male. In this case sexual orientation influences health negatively in case of homosexuals who are living in a Zimbabwean setting. In Zimbabwe the issue of homosexual relationships is forbidden by the laws of the country and a huge consequence will be faced by those who practise homosexuality. Therefore the people who are living with homosexuality are more prone to diseases such as stress, depression, high blood pressure etc. because they will be facing rejection by families and the country as a whole which becomes difficult to practise their humanity freely.This also will introduce alcoholism and substance abuse in homosexuals inorder to cope with rejection and isolation according to Diamond (2008). On the other hand those who are attracted to people of the opposite sex which is acceptable in the country are less likely to be prone bad health as compared to homosexuals. Therefore this shows that sexuality (sexual orientation) influences health care.
Societal expectations influence health care because they act as social control. In this case there are certain behaviours that are not acceptable in the society among people and this are for example prostitution, extra-marital affairs, out of wedlock childbearing, sex before marriage and substance abuse in youths. People in a particular society are governed by the societal norms and expectations. Therefore this influence healthcare in that people will act in a way that is deemed right by the society in fear of stigmatization, mockery and isolations which decreases the chances of people getting diseases such as S.T.Ds.But in some cases societal expectations can actually influence health in a negative way for example the fact that the society expects a person to get married before having a baby those who might have had unwanted pregnancies might risk having unsafe abortions due to the fear of what the society will say according to the World Health Organisation (2005). Therefore one cannot deny that societal expectations (sexuality) influences health care.
It is not deniable that sexuality influences health care in so many ways. Sexuality in this case involves gender, sex, relationships, sexual orientation, societal expectations, values and beliefs and religion. The essay clearly brings out how sexuality influences health care that is negatively and positively. Therefore this brings justice to the above assertion.

REFERENCE
Blanc A (2009). POWER IN SEXUAL RELATIONSHIPS. New York, the Population Council.
Berman L, Berman Fielder S, et al (2003).SEEKING HELP FOR SEXUAL FUNCTION COMPLAINTS.Fertil Steril, 79:572-576
Couldrick L. (1998).SEXUAL ISSUES WITHIN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY, part 1: ATTITUDES AND PRACTICE. British Journal of Occupational Therapy.61:493-496.
Diamond M. (2008).HOMOSEXUALITY AND BISEXUALITY IN DIFFERENT POPULATIONS.ARCH SEX BEHAVIOUR.22:291-310
Dixon-Mueller R (2007). THE SEXUALITY CONNECTION IN REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH. STUDIES IN FAMILY PLANNING, 24: 269-82
Kirby D et al. (2002).THE IMPACT OF SCHOOLS AND SCHOOL PROGRAMS ON ADOLESCENT SEXUAL BEHAVIOUR. The Journal of Sex Research 39 (1): 27-33.
Sengupta S, Stubbs B, (2008).SEXUALITY AND HEALTHCARE:CAN WE KEEP IGNORING THE ISSUE? British Journal of Occupational Therapy.15:286-287
UNSAFE ABORTION: GLOBAL AND REGIONAL ESTIMATES OF INCI- DENCE AND MORTALITY DUE TO UNSAFE ABORTION WITH A LISTING OF AVAILABLE COUNTRY DATA. Geneva, World Health Organization 2000.